Protect Our Winters (POW)

leg29@duke.edu — Tue, 17 Apr 2018 16:14:53 +0000

Description:

Protect Our Winters (POW) is an environmental activist group dedicated to protecting winter through climate action. POW was founded in 2007 by professional snowboarder Jeremy Jones. The organization aims to inspire the snowsports community to take action against climate change through focusing on educational initiatives, political activism, and community-based activism.

Protect our Winters partners with professional snow sport athletes, individuals, resorts, and outdoor companies to create, "a social movement on climate, designed to activate a passionate community and create the political will for meaningful action by state and federal policymakers" (POW).

By involving athletes and the outdoor industry, POW provides a platform for industry, with significant stake and economic impact, and environmentalists to join together under their shared interests to protecting the outdoors and climate.

Goals:

POW aims to mobilize the outdoor sports community to create a social movement for climate change in an effort to dictate the outcome of climate policy by engaging in educational initiatives, political advocacy, and community-based activism.

Structure:

Protect our Winters has a Board of Directors whose members are:

Conrad Anker: Professional Mountaineer, The North Face
Winston Binch: Deutsch North America
Donna Carpenter: Burton Snowboards
Chris Davenport: Professional Skier
Jamie Mcjunkin: Madrone Capital Partners
Naomi Oreskes: Harvard University
Micah Ragland: Walmart
Auden Schendler (Chairman): Aspen Skiing Company
Rob Webb: Liftopia

The organization also has a staff at their headquarters in Colorado, a science alliance for climate and environmental science, and a riders alliance to support professional athletes in environmental activism.

Genealogy:

Founded in 2007 by professional snowboarder Jeremy Jones, POW has since grown to include other athletes, outdoor enthusiasts, resorts, and outdoor companies. POW's network has grown to include over 130,000 supporters and has operations locations in 9 countries, including the United States, France, Austria, Norway, Finland, Sweden, Switzerland, Germany, and the U.K.

Campaigns:

POW campaigns include changing climate policy, attending summits, climate advocacy, marches, and the Hot Planets Cool Athletes educational program. Policy change currently focuses on carbon pricing, solar, and transportation.

Communication Strategy:

POW utilizes social media, including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Vimeo. They have also produced three films highlighting the need for climate action. They utilize professional athletes to engage their followers and promote the POW platform, attend outdoor sports events such as big competitions, and have been featured in several magazines including Rolling Stone, Outside Magazine, and the New York Times.

Florida Keys Reef Relief

kcc24@duke.edu — Wed, 04 Apr 2018 20:21:40 +0000

Description:

Reef Relief is a nonprofit organization based in Key West, Florida focused on protecting and raising advocacy for coral reef ecosystems. The organization works to educate the public and policy makers on the importance of coral reefs to the ocean's health as well as the overarching issue of climate change. Throughout the years, reef relief has been seen impacting local and national policy change with regards to protecting marine ecosystems.

Goals:

Goals and aspirations:

To use science to raise advocacy and educate the public in the importance of conservation, protection, and restoration.

To develop community-based, grassroots-like efforts to combat the destruction of coral reefs

To design and implement strategies to protect and restore coral reef ecosystems

To encourage and support a sustainable economy with an emphasis on eco-tourism

Historical/Political Context:

N/a

Structure:

Founded by Craig and Deevon Quirolo, the group consists of a board of directors, members, volunteers, interns studying marine science, local and corporate sponsors, and foundations. The board of directors consists of 14 individuals that use the support of volunteers and sponsor organizations to make changes in policy to support the protection of coral reefs.

Genealogy:

Beginning in 1987, Reef Relief has been active for over 28 years. The group began with the simple installation of reef mooring buoys throughout the ocean in Key West. Since then, Reef Relief is responsible for more than 116 buoys, the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, the Negril Marine Park in Jamaica, as well as campaigns and policy changes like the Clean Water Campaign and the increased treatment for municipal sewage, ban on phosphate within laundry detergents, and the prevention of off-shore oil drilling in South Florida. Today, Reef Relief looks to add coral reefs to the list of U. S. Endangered Species in order to gain protection at the federal level.

Campaigns:

https://www.reefrelief.org/history/

Ideological Composition:

N/a

Communication Strategy:

The group focuses on social media, shout outs from local businesses, word of the public, and personal connections in order to communicate with people and policy-makers effectively.

Created New Spaces:

N/a

Incorporated Cultural Forms:

N/a

Oppositional Forces:

Coral bleaching, anthropogenic forcing, commercial and local fishermen, boaters, ignorant tourists, the fossil fuel industry,

Social Movements - policy change

Protect Our Winters (POW)

Florida Keys Reef Relief